DORA metrics changes

DX is rolling out changes to how the Merge to Deploy and Open to Deploy lead time metrics are calculated in system-based DORA reports. The updated calculations improve both the accuracy and performance of these reports.

What’s changing

These changes affect how lead time events are counted in the four lead time reports: Merge to Deploy by author, Open to Deploy by author, Merge to Deploy by service, and Open to Deploy by service.

By author reports

Previously, if the same PR was deployed to multiple services, each deployment was counted as a separate event in the report. Now, DX tracks only one lead time per PR—from its open or merge to its last deployment—regardless of how many services it was deployed to.

By service reports

Previously, each PR associated with a service’s deployment was treated as a separate event. Now, for each deployment to a service, DX tracks only the time from the open or merge of the first PR associated with that deployment. This means a single deployment to a service produces a single lead time measurement rather than one per PR.

Why we’re making these changes

1. More accurate metrics – Treating batched PRs as a single deployment event better reflects how software is actually delivered. A deployment ships as a unit, regardless of how many PRs it contains.
2. Better alignment with DORA definitions – These changes bring DX’s system-based lead time metrics closer to the canonical DORA definitions, which are centered on deployments rather than individual code changes.
3. Improved performance – The previous per-PR calculation approach had scalability limitations. The updated calculations are significantly more performant, resulting in faster report load times.

What to expect

• Reports may show different values – Because PRs within a deployment are now batched rather than counted individually, you may notice changes in your Merge to Deploy and Open to Deploy numbers. This does not indicate a change in your team’s actual performance—it reflects a more accurate way of measuring the same underlying activity.
• No action required – These changes apply automatically. No changes to your deployment configuration are needed.
• Historical data – Updated calculations apply to both new and historical data, so your reports will reflect the new methodology across all time periods.

Questions?

If you have questions about how these changes affect your reports, please reach out to your DX contact or email support@getdx.com.